Drunk and Disorderly
by zoebrenn
Summary: Callen finds an unexpected visitor at the office in the middle of the night and sees a whole new side to Nell Jones.


**Okay, so I know I'm supposed to be working on my other stories but I had insomnia last night and instead of sleeping I ended up writing this one-shot. Just some light hearted fun. I hope you like it :)**

It was the clacking of heels that stirred him from sleep. But it was the shriek, the soft thud, and the subsequent laughter that actually woke him up. Callen opened one eye and looked around him, trying to identify the source of the sounds. Flinging the blanket off his body, he peeled himself up off the office couch and padded through the bullpen. When he stepped through the partitions and out into the main hallway, he was more than surprised to find Nell Jones in a heap on the floor, laughing to herself as she scooped up the contents of her spilled purse and shoved it all back in. She was wearing the strapless black dress he had seen her leave in after work, recalling she was going to meet some college friends for a reunion of sorts. Clearly she had had a good time.

"Nell?" he looked down at her and when she lifted her head to meet his gaze he could tell from the glazed look in her eyes and her hyper dilated pupils that not only was she drunk, she was absolutely, completely and utterly wasted.

"Nell, what the hell are you doing here?" he asked as he crouched down in front of her.

"Shhhhh." She held a finger to her lips. "Hetty will hear you." She said seriously.

"Nell, it's 3.30 in the morning and Hetty, like most people, is sound asleep at home." Callen told her.

"She'll still hear you." She replied, before dissolving into a quiet fit of giggles.

"Nell, what are you doing here?" he repeated his earlier question, trying to find out why the young analyst was at the office in the middle of the night.

"I left my house keys in my locker." She told him as she struggled to get back to her feet, her first attempt resulting in her falling right back down again. Mostly entertained but with just a hint of concern for her, Callen stood up and walked behind Nell then slipped his hands under her arms and literally lifted her back onto her feet.

"There you go." He said as she found her balance, something she struggled to keep in heels.

"Left my keys." She repeated as she began to stumble through the bullpen towards the lockers, using the desks to steady herself but failing quite miserably. "Need my keys to get home."

Callen followed Nell as she went to her locker and began to fumble with the combination lock. It seemed like she had forgotten he was there because when he moved to stand beside her she looked at him with confusion.

"What are you doing here?" she asked. Callen laughed a little and shook his head.

"I _was_ sleeping." He told her. "You woke me up."

"Oh." Nell covered her mouth with her hands. "Sorry. I forgot my keys."

"I know, they're in your locker."

"How did you know?" she asked, looking genuinely surprised. Callen couldn't keep the smile off his face. He had never seen Nell so much as tipsy before and seeing her this drunk was interesting.

"You just told me." He said. "Need some help with that?" he pointed at the lock she was fiddling with.

"I got it." She smiled as she turned the last of the numbers to the right position and then yanked down to remove the lock. She rummaged in the locker and triumphantly removed her keys, jangling them in the air.

"Nell, how did you get here?" Callen asked.

"Cab." She replied. "I need to call a cab to go home now." She began looking through her purse for her cell phone but Callen grabbed her hands.

"Give me a minute to get my stuff and I'll drive you home." Callen told her. He could easily ensure she got a cab but Nell was so far gone he felt he had to make sure she made it home safely. There was just something about the petite woman that made him want to look out for her.

"Agent Callen, you are a true gentleman." Nell nodded and began to stumble around the bullpen poking at items on the desks, while he quickly pulled his boots on. Grabbing his jacket off the back of his chair, he jogged over to her and with a hand on her lower back he steered her in the direction of the exit.

As they stepped outside into the cold night air, Nell shivered.

"Hey, it got cold." She said, looking to Callen. "It wasn't cold when I left the club." Callen opened out his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. He kept one hand on her shoulder, using it to steer her in the right direction and give her a bit of stability as she stumbled along beside him.

"Better?" he asked.

"Much." She grinned. "Where's your car?" she asked.

"Not far." Callen pointed to where his car was parked in the parking lot just adjacent to the building.

"Hmm, not the Aston Martin." She pouted.

"Not tonight Nell." Callen laughed. "Just the Impala."

"A car's a car, and a car is a ride home." She shrugged.

"That it is Nell." Callen nodded.

Less than twenty minutes later he pulled up at her apartment. In that time, Nell had gone from chatty wide awake drunk, to half asleep ready to pass out drunk. She was slumped over in the seat, her head resting against the glass of the window.

"Hey." Callen reached over and brushed her cheek with his hand. "We're here."

"Home?" she asked.

"Yes Nell, home." Callen smiled as he took off his seatbelt. Nell began to fumble with hers as he stepped out and walked around to the passenger side of the car. When he opened her door, she had managed to get the seatbelt off and taking his extended hand, she stepped out and onto the sidewalk.

"I'm tired." She announced.

"I'm not surprised." Callen replied as he walked her up the path to the main entrance. "It's very late." He glanced at his watch and saw it was just gone 4am. "You got your keys?" he asked. Nell rummaged in her purse and pulled them out. Callen took them from her and as they reached the door he sorted through the various keys and finally opened the main door.

"Almost home." He said as he led her through the foyer and up the stairs. "What's your number?" he asked as they reached the top of the stairs, not sure which way to go next.

"1B." she told him. "Over there." She took a few staggered steps and reached her door then leaned against the wall. Callen found another key on the keychain and opened her apartment door.

"Home sweet home." He turned to her to see she had her eyes closed. "Nell." He reached out and took her hand, pulling her upright and directing her into her apartment.

Nell kicked her shoes off as she walked in before dropping her purse on the little table just inside the door. Callen wasn't sure whether to come in behind her but when Nell dropped his jacket on the floor and wandered into her bedroom without a word, leaving the door open, he stepped in and closed it behind him. He could hear her bumping around in her bedroom, presumably getting changed, so after picking up his jacket, he headed to the kitchen to get her some water for her. He knew she would feel like crap the next morning but if he could get her to drink some water and take a couple Tylenol, it may just help a little.

He was standing in the kitchen running the cold tap when she emerged from her bedroom wearing black sweats and a black vest and carrying her purse. He wondered for a moment why she had picked it up off the table but decided not to give the logic of someone who was drunk too much thought. She stumbled down the hall and into the lounge, only appearing mildly surprised to see him there.

"Here, drink this and take these." He told her as he walked over and handed her a large glass of water and two pills.

"Why?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

"Because you're drunk and this might help reduce the hangover you're going to have tomorrow."

"Oh, okay." She nodded, popped the pills in her mouth and took several large gulps of the water. She handed him the glass back, crossed to the couch and after tossing her purse on the table, fell down onto the couch, face first. Once Callen had put the glass back in the kitchen, he walked over and sat down on the coffee table beside her. Nell's hair had fallen across her face and as Callen watched her, he reached out and brushed her hair behind her ear.

"I hope you had a good time tonight Nell." He said quietly. She mumbled something in response then her eyes flew open.

"I feel sick." She stated.

"Uh, okay." Callen looked about him the grabbed the small trash can from beside the table. He held it up as Nell lifted her upper body up. For a moment he thought she was going to throw up right there but after a few seconds she lay back down and closed her eyes.

"I'm good." She whispered. Callen placed the trash can on the floor directly under her head so if she did wake and feel sick, she'd have it handy. Then rising to his feet, he reached over and pulled the blanket off the back of the couch, draping it over her.

"Sweet dreams Nell." He said, leaning down and placing a soft kiss on the top of her head, before stepping around the table and settling down into the armchair opposite. He was a little concerned that she might get sick while she slept and though she may be angry with him in the morning, he decided to stay a while just to make sure she was alright.

It was a little after seven in the morning when Callen's cell vibrated. He had been half asleep but woke the moment he felt the buzzing in his pocket. He pulled out his cell and leapt up off the chair to take the call in the kitchen.

"Callen."

"Mr Callen, I'm sorry to wake you so early on a Saturday but you are needed at the office." Hetty told him. "We have a priority case."

"I'll be there as soon as I can." Callen responded. After hanging up he let out a heavy sigh. He knew if the team was being called in, Nell would be too but he was pretty sure she wouldn't be in any fit state to actually work. He was about to go and gently wake her when her cell began to ring loudly in her purse. He heard her groan and watched as she flapped an arm around until she located her purse and with one hand managed to open it and pull her cell out.

"Hello?" she mumbled. She listened for a moment then grunted a response before flinging her cell back down on the table. Callen stood in the kitchen, wondering how to make his presence known without startling her. He was pretty sure her memories of the night before would be fuzzy at best.

"Morning Nell." He settled on the direct approach. It got her attention. Her head slowly appeared over the back of the couch and she stared at him with wide eyes.

"I have three questions." She groaned. "What the hell happened last night? How did I get home? And why are you here?"

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you got up to last night Nell so I can't help you with that answer." He shook his head. "I can, however, answer your other two questions. I drove you home after you turned up at the office at 3.30 this morning looking for your house keys. And I'm here because you were absolutely hammered and I was worried you'd choke on your own vomit if I left you alone."

"Oh my god." Nell disappeared behind the couch again. "I am so embarrassed." he heard her mumble.

"Well, you don't have time to be embarrassed. I assume that was your call to get to the office?" he said.

"Yes." She groaned.

"Why don't you go get ready and I'll drive you in. I'm pretty sure you're still drunk and you should definitely not be behind the wheel of a car." He laughed but Nell clearly didn't see the funny side as she muttered something that sounded like a curse, then hauled herself up and off to the bathroom, bumping into the wall as she went.

"Yup, definitely still drunk." Callen muttered to himself as he watched her go.

When she emerged fifteen minutes later Callen was surprised by her attire. She had thrown on a pair of blue jeans, a hooded sweatshirt from her old college that was at least two sizes too big and a pair of sneakers. Completing the look was a pair of black sunglasses with large frames that hid half her face. It was very un-Nell like, at least not the Nell he knew from work.

"You want coffee?" he asked.

"Mmm hmm." She nodded her head slowly as she retrieved her cell from the coffee table and stuffed it into a satchel she held in her hand. "My keys?" she croaked as she pulled the strap of the satchel over her shoulder.

"On the table by the door." Callen told her as he pulled on his jacket. "I'll stop on the way and get you a triple shot."

Callen had just pulled away from the coffee shop after picking up a very large extra strong coffee for Nell, when she finally spoke.

"I didn't…do anything…or say anything last night, I mean…" she trailed off.

"You were a perfect lady." Callen assured her. "Well, aside from when you fell over in the office and passed out on your couch."

"Oh my god." Nell raised a hand to her head.

"Relax Nell, you don't have anything to be embarrassed about."

"Easy for you to say." She groaned and slid down in the seat a little.

"We've all been there Nell." Callen turned and smiled at her but she had her head lowered and was not even remotely looking in his direction.

"I'm sure most people are capable of getting themselves home, unlike me."

"Oh, I'm sure you would have gotten yourself home just fine if I hadn't been there." Callen nodded.

"You could have just put me in a cab. Why _didn't_ you just put me in a cab?" she asked, suddenly very curious about exactly why Callen had driven her home.

"I just wanted to make sure you got home safely." He told her. "I'd do the same for anyone else in the same position."

"You'd drive Deeks home and stay over just to make sure he didn't get sick?" she asked, turning to look at him for the first time, albeit it through very dark glasses.

"Okay, so maybe not _anyone_ else." Callen smirked.

"I haven't even thanked you, have I?" Nell asked quietly after a moment.

"No need."

"Yes, there is a need." Nell sighed. "Thank you, for making sure I got home safely."

"You're welcome Nell." Callen smiled.

The rest of the team had already arrived at the office and when Callen entered with Nell at his side, clutching her large Starbucks coffee with her sunglasses still shielding her face, they both received several curious looks.

"Nell?" Kensi asked. Nell turned her head in Kensi's direction but she didn't say anything; instead she headed straight for the stairs leading to the ops room. Callen shook his head and chuckled.

"Callen?" Kensi looked to the Senior Agent for some kind of explanation.

"Nell's a little hungover…possibly still drunk." He explained. "I gave her a ride in."

"Nell, hungover?" Deeks asked.

"Apparently she had a great time with her friends last night." Callen smirked.

"Should she even be here?" Sam asked.

"Oh, you know Nell, she'd come in even if she had the plague." Callen slumped down in his chair.

"She may wish she had the plague going by the look on Hetty's face." Sam nodded to Callen, who glanced behind him and saw Hetty with a very stern look on her face as she talked on the phone.

"Maybe I should take Nell some more coffee, looks like she's going to need it." Callen chuckled to himself.

**Reviews are always appreciated!**


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